If the University of Hawaii wants the essence of the offense its Hawaii Bowl opponent, Middle Tennessee State, runs, little undercover work is required.

No need to furtively wedge in amid the rusting fixtures at Aloha Stadium or circle a drone high above practices in Halawa this week.

Just ask any of the hundreds of high school coaches across the county who ante up for offensive coordinator Tony Franklin’s service and seminars each year.

For 16 years Franklin has been the Tony Robbins of offensive philosophy, opening wide his playbook and imagination via the “Tony Franklin Systems” to high school and other coaches. “We usually have between 200 and 250 coaching staffs and hold four seminars a year, one in Nashville, and the others in Atlantic City, N.J.; Dallas and California,” Franklin said.

Over the years, the 59-year-old Franklin admits, some of those coaches have gone on to college jobs, where they have confronted his teams. “I don’t care; it is about execution and doing the little things right,” Franklin said.

He’s done enough of them well that each of the past five seasons, spread across three different teams (Louisiana Tech, California and, now, MTSU, Franklin’s passing game has rated in the top 12 nationally in Division I.

This year the Blue Raiders (8-4) are averaging 317 passing yards and 40.1 points a game, ranking 12th and 16th, despite having their starting quarterback on the sidelines with a broken collarbone for the past three games.

When the backup quarterback subsequently went down as well, Franklin employed two wide receivers who had been quarterbacks in high school to help the Blue Raiders pull off a November victory (77-56) over Florida Atlantic.

“He is really good at his job — he’s innovative, creative and known for scoring points,” UH coach Nick Rolovich said. “He’s done a lot for the football world.”

Franklin spent 16 years as a high school coach in his native Kentucky before joining the Air Raid offense of Hal Mumme and Mike Leach at the University of Kentucky in 1997.

Lessons learned in four seasons there combined with his own discoveries over the years have shaped his philosophy of a constantly evolving, relentless, fast-paced offense that isn’t afraid to take chances or part with convention.

It was a recruiting scandal at Kentucky, where nearly three dozen NCAA allegations were levied against the school, that put him on the path to becoming an entrepreneur. While he waited for another job — and a court action required Kentucky to send letters to every other college attesting to Franklin innocence in the scandal — he started his business.

As some of his customers won league and state titles, Franklin became in demand, moving from Troy to an ill-fated stop at Auburn and back on to success at MTSU and Louisiana Tech. Sonny Dykes took Franklin with him from Louisiana Tech to Cal, where Franklin groomed quarterback Jared Goff, the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

“He’s been unbelievable to work with,” said Brent Stockstill, MTSU’s quarterback. “He’s taught me a lot about football — and about life. He’s taken my game and our offense to the next level. He’s created such a buzz around his program.”

For all the statistics, one of the most revealing things about Franklin is the painting of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid that hangs over the mantle of his Tennessee home.

“The Butch and Sundance deal is about not being afraid to use all your bullets, to live life and not be afraid to take chances,” Franklin said.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.